Tending Flames
by quicksear
Summary: Firestorm could never be excited about a life full of explosions and colour. What's the point of shooting stuff without a target, right? Enter one very eclectic pegasus on a mission, one that just so crosses Firestorm's at every possible turn. OCs of course, and some serious turmoil eventually. I can't for the life of me find a cover for this story...
1. Chapter 1: An Interesting Day

**Hiya, just a quick background here. A friend of mine asked for an OC, since I'm the only person we both know who can scratch a picture, and would draw ponies. Unfortunately, I also have an overactive imagination, which lead to a story building up. So basically ten minutes after he asked for a sketch I was writing this. **  
**Enjoy.**

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There wasn't much excitement in Firestorm's life. He lived the usual routine of every other pony, going to and from town, greeting, eating and all that. Maybe even talking to a few ponies for a bit. But for the most part, it was just the normal day to day grind, not much to brighten his view of existence.

Oh, and he made fireworks. Fuck-tons of fireworks.

Firestorm's Fireworks was THE household name in everything that went bang to any degree all across Equestria. His business made everything from whizz-pops to rain-bombs, cracklers to cannons, and all manner flashy bright and loud pegasus terrors. It was what he loved to do. Blow shit up.

But yeah, that was about it. Aside from being a wold renowned unicorn inventor and entertainer, his life was pretty boring.

Firestorm was testing some new rocket designs today. That meant he was probably going to ignite something, likely enough himself. Which was why he was currently wearing the heavy dark grey coat that wrapped around his torso and forelegs, zipping up the front and parting again in an enormous hood that buttoned up to cover his neck and head. Only his hind legs, tail and eyes would be exposed, but even so, his light ochre coat was usually dusted with dark grey powder residue that gave him a very monotone appearance. At least he was recognizable: Nopony else had his dark grey tail, permanently singed and ragged from experiments, or his bright fireball of a cuti-mark, so often hidden beneath ash on his coat. His horn was a give away too. The damn thing never once got any Powder on it, and always looked so clean in it's ochre coloured spledour. Idiot horn.

Firewstorm wandered over to the testing field a good mile from town, but only half that from the Fireworks Factory. The area was silent, all the animals having been chased away over the years by the giant explosions. The clear sky seemed to leach colour at the test site because of the shield cast over the area for protection. The reason this precaution was necessary was planted firmly in the middle of the the huge clearing in the sparsely wooded wilderness just before the Everfree Forest to the east of Trottingham. There, surrounded by the studious masters of the the factory, was the world's biggest cannon.

The enormous piece of steel was mounted on a huge barbette; no wheels could handle the kind of force of such a high velocity gun. The device was permanently pointed at the mountain barely visible on the horizon, and the city perched bravely on its side. Canterlot's world famous celebrations were no mean feat, and this gun just made them all the more spectacular, with the amount of fireworks it could deliver just over the city. It was said that the lights brought on by this single invention were as close as any pony had ever come to rivaling Celestia's sun itself.

But it wasn't firing today. Instead, it was the cluster of shoulder high party rockets planted like the Tartarus's flowers in a bare patch of earth a few steps from the barbette's stone base. _Okay, time for a bit of fun._

Firestorm may not have been easily excited by...well, life, but that little bundle of joy in explosive form was about to make his day. These were special orders for one of his regular customers, the Great and Prickly Trixie. Anypony trying to impress everypony as much as that pony needed the scariest damn fireworks imaginable, and the patterns these things made would blow her usual spinners out of the sky.

He waved a hoof at all the unicorns and earth ponies standing around, warning them to retreat to the berms just inside the treeline. They all did so quite quickly, well aware that ten rockets were enough to hurt many of them. The only pony with any sense of safety was the cloaked smudgy brown unicorn who just so happened to be the world expert on manipulating fire.

* * *

The whole fire thing would not go down very well with a certain Pegasus who happened to be passing at that precise moment. Seeing an enormous pile of what amounted to bombs clustered around a unicorn was slightly unnerving to begin with. Watching said unicorn lighting the many fuses surrounding him was clearly a sign of deep psychosis. The Pegasus looked around for a second until his eyes settled on a likely looking little cloud nearby. He flew to it, grinning.

* * *

It was with much the same expression that Firework merrily set fire to the tapers around him. Then he backed away and crouched down to watch in anticipation. Firestorm felt a rare squee coming on as he watched the fused work their way closer and closer to their rockets. Seconds left...

And then there was a small and incredibly direct rain shower. It drenched the rockets in seconds. the ground turned muddy and the one by one the fuses fizzled out in the pouring rain. One fuse struggled against the tide, but, a hairs breadth from the rocket body, a drop of rain struck it. Firestorm let loose a spell in silent desperation. He gathered all the heat left in the fuse and relit it, trying to force the rocket into life. But it was not to be. Firestorm closed his eyes for a second, before looking up at the now white and fluffy cloud hovering just above the treetops. More importantly, he spotted the sniggering face of a pegasus peeking down at him.

Firestorm growled slightly and rapidly heated the cloud until it evaporated into thin air, revealing his tormentor. The pegasus fell with a yelp. _That'll wipe that smug look off his face_, Firestorm thought with some satisfaction. This disappeared when the pegasus extended his frankly enormous wings and glided down to just in front of the irate fire mechanic.

"Hiya! My name's Chasing Haze, what's with the sparky stuff?" The pegasus sensed that the Unicorn might be slightly ticked off for some reason.

Firestorm looked the rascal over. He had a light blue coat, like the colour of the sky of a midday autumn horizon. His mane was a loosely hanging assortment of spiky hair, his tail similar, both just off black with the odd white highlight here and there. It made for an eclectic mix. the Pegasus' frame was very lightly built, all long legs and neck, with a wiry look that bespoke many hours on the wing despite his youth. Speaking of wings, this specimen had a pair at least twice the size of your run-of-the-mill pegasus, which added much to his presence when spread. Folded, they just made him look a little chubby.  
"What the fuck did you rain on me for? Do you know who I am?" Firestorm growled.

Chasing Haze had absolutely no clue what this unicorn was talking about. "Uh...No. I'm new here." He smiled at the annoyance displayed at that.

"What?...Okay, whatever, listen, this is a designated off limits test area, and you just-"  
"Rained on your parade?" Finished Chasing, nearly keeling over with laughter.

Even Firestorm had to admit, that was sharp. And, in truth, no harm had been done. The rockets' wax coated skins had protected them from damage. Still, this had been an important test.  
"Listen, I am Firestorm of Firestorm's Fireworks, And this area is off limits, everypony knows that. You have to recognize the name at least. Now I'm sure you won't mind leaving so I can reset the fuses and get on with my job."

Chasing Haze looked up at the sky, "Yeah, I guess...If the fire is well tended...and stuff..." He focused on Firestorm, "I come from down south a ways. I haven't heard of Firestorm's Fireworks, but I'm pleased to meet you, Firestorm. I just got a job with the fire patrol, so we might meet again soon! I'm going to Ponyville, ask for me if you're ever in town!" Haze spun and raising his large wings, took off.

Firestorm caught a glimpse of a cuti-mark. Sort of a raindrop shape, and indeed, the left half of the pattern was one. The other half was half a candle flame.

"Yeah right..." He mumbled, before shouting out to his minions for more fuses.


	2. Chapter 2: More New Faces

Firestorm had a serious difficulty now. That damn Pegasus had ruined half of his remaining three cubit match fuses. Now he'd need to go buy more in town. This was not as easy as one might think, since Trottingham, being a small town without the central placing or accessibility of some other towns, could never keep up with the demand of the outsize Factory on it's borders. The only other town nearby, just to the north, would surely have match fuses, but it also had a blue terror flying around somewhere.

Firestorm sat on the barbette and looked up at the brilliant display his brand new rockets put on for his discerning eye. He sighed and looked away. They were good enough to impress the Great and Pompous Trixie. He had a trip to plan. Destination: Ponyville.

* * *

Chasing Haze woke up and yawned widely before shaking his head to clear his mane and looking down at the town that seemed to have sprouted under him while he slept. Sleeping on the wing was a hit or miss affair, literally sometimes, and a rare skill among pegasi, but he had always been good at it. He let out an excited squee and rolled to the left into a long bank to avoid overshooting the town entirely. He'd made it! Now he just had to find his new boss. She was sure to be up and about, right?

He was just about invisible from the ground due to his colour, but as he sped up in his excitement, a trail formed behind him, the tell tale mixed blue and black streak with a crackling white energy surrounding it, heralding his passing. The clouds hid him from the ground, but not from another pair of eyes nestled among the white expanse.

Chasing didn't see the pony flying along with him so much as sense the change in the air. He looked back and saw the rainbow streak following his own wake, and tracked it back to its source. Not three tail-lengths from him, above and to the left, was the cyan pegasus with the rainbow mane and tail he had been looking for. But instead of joy, the mischievous grin she wore brought a sense of trepidation. _This isn't gonna end well, _he thought.

Quite rightly. The mare streaked into his back at a terrific speed, knocking the wind out of him and throwing him off the wing. as he spun out, she latched her hooves around his midriff and cannoned them towards the ground, in a move well known as the slingshot. Usually used to speed up pegasi into action, she was using it to throw him at the ground so fast that a normal pegasus wouldn't be able to pull up. _Awww shit..._

__This realization was followed by a sickening lurch and sudden freedom as Rainbow Dash peeled off and threw Chasing at the ground at full speed. She flew off into a large loop and looked down to see a bit of a surprise: Nothing. As she looked around, Chasing grinned and laughed into his hoof from his new position just behind her. She hadn't accounted for his large wings' ability to halt him as easily as they did. Now he followed her all the way to the ground and hovered just behind a convenient tree as she cast about for him.

Then she stopped, sat down and called out, "Okay, Chasing Haze, sweet move, now come out here so I can get a look at you."

Chasing obliged, since she was officially his boss after all. As he glided of to her, he gave her a look over. Relatively lightly built, but obviously strong, with excellent conformation. Her colouration was a bit insane, but it seemed to match her personality. No wonder she was the best up and coming flyer around. He landed in front of her and sat at a attention, figuring she liked being in charge. Good call.

"So, you're meant to be the new fireguard eh? You look a tad lanky for such hard work, you know." She waited for his answer.

He couldn't help but smile. He was used to this. "If I was anything like that, you probably would have killed me just now."

Rainbow Dash nodded, smiling too. "I knew you could handle it. Your sister made you sound like the perfect cross between a hummingbird and an Albatross."

Saying that was a nice complement was a massive understatement. Not knowing what to say, he decided to counter her, "And that makes you a Falcon, right?"

Rainbow Dash stood and spread her wings, giving them a little flutter as confirmation. "You betcha. Now, stand up and show me those feathers."

Not too much to ask, even if Chasing Haze's wings were sore from so long on the wing, but he raised them into a full arch, spreading his feathers to maximize size. Rainbow Dash's little buzzers were dwarfed by his outsize wings. She, though, understood the mechanics of flight, the advantages and drawbacks of being able to double as a two-pony tent.

She cocked her head and said thoughtfully, "That's an impressive span. Too bad it makes you look like you've got colic when they're folded. Not quite as large as your sister's, but yours suit you more." She walked up to him and inspected the trailing feathers on both wings as Chasing stood there like a statue, trying not to react to having his wings toyed with. "Your pinions look a bit stressed. How long were you flying for?"

Chasing thought for a second. "Um...About two weeks, I think? No, ten days, I stopped in Las Pegasus for a day, and Trottingham yesterday, each for a meal."

Rainbow's jaw dropped. "Twelve days from Broadwing Peak to Ponyville? What, were you sleeping on the wing or something?!"

Chasing rubbed his head with a hoof as he answered a little guiltily, "Uh, yeah, I was a little excited to get over here, so..."

Rainbow frowned at him. "So wait, you're telling me that not only are you fast, strong, and maneuverable, but you can fly asleep as well?"

Chasing Haze nodded. She made it sound like a bid deal or something. She snorted at him. "That's it. You and I are racing in two days. You aren't due to start til next Tuesday so you'll have four days to recover from the whipping I give you before you were due to arrive anyway. See ya at my house Thursday morning."

Chasing looked up at her as she took off and receded into the late afternoon sky. Oh, right, he'd better find the way-cottage down the road where he was meant to be staying. He flew up and glided over towards the building at the other end of the town. A few ponies looked up at him as he flew low over the town, too tired now to fly higher. He gave them all a friendly wave of a hoof, but focused on the building set on the hill just over the cottages. He landed by the front door and looked at the sign. Rosewood Cottage. He walked in.

The building consisted of two wings on each side of the entrance hall, each made up of a few smaller arched rooms, with beds and and trunks lining the walls. At the end of the eastern wing was a day room/lounge with music currently being played. At the other end, the west, was the kitchen and other necessary store rooms. All in all, it looked like a nice enough place. He walked towards the lounge.

He looked in and saw the caretaker, a grey and straw coloured pegasus mare, talking to a similarly coloured unicorn filly. He cleared his throat to get her a attention.

The mare took off in surprise, but forgot how fly momentarily, and crashed down a few hooves from where she had been sitting. Ignoring the laughter of the filly, She stood up and brushed herself off as if nothing had happened, and her eyes focused on the newcomer in the doorway. One of them did, anyway.

Chasing hid a smile and greeted. "Hiya, I'm Chasing Haze, I'm just looking for a place to stay til I start work next week. That cool?"

The mare answered a bit haltingly, but well enough. "Hi...I'm D-Ditzy Doo. Sure, t-that's what Rosewood is f-for after all. I'll g-get you some supper..."

"Nah, I'm good, I just really need to sleep some. See you in the morning." She nodded, smiling, and sat back down to her conversation.

_Well she's nice. And well named._ Chasing thought perhaps a little uncharitably as he walked back towards the door. He saw a random bed and decided that it would do, fell on it and promptly forgot himself in the depths of sleep.


	3. Chapter 3: Friends and Family

**Let's get some reviews here! I'd like to know how this is being received. It can only get better after all.**

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It was a VERY uncomfortable trip. Ponyville was a good five days from Trottingham along the usual road. This road avoided the major bogs and a cursed river or two that lay on the border of the Everfree. and adventurous pony could make the trip in only two days if they took a direct route, but then on the other hand the would probably end up dead. A pony who was simply impatient could avoid this possibly terrible fate by simply walking around the Ursor Cave, but some were still foolhardy enough to chance it.

Firestorm had simply been in a rush. Still, falling in a bog, being chased by timber-wolves and having a chance meeting with an unhappy manticore who had required actual fucking conversation, had left him worn out. He stood on the edge of the forest, looking down on the picturesque village that bore the name Ponyville. he looked over the roofs and trees from the rise he had climbed. The neat brightly coloured town was the total contrast to his ragged and mud splattered appearance. His entire body was painted a dull browny-grey from the mud of the bog. his saddlebags were near ruined, but luckily had protected their contents. He began to tiredly stumble towards the town. _My I'll take the coach like a normal pony on the way back._

He made for the way-cottage on it's rustic hill just outside the town itself, with it's gorgeous view over the town that Firestorm never failed to miss. He was about the climb the rise when he heard a voice from the building; "Uh, Ditzy... as a fireguard-to-be, I don't think a summer salad is meant to be ON FIRE!"

As crashes and squeals emanated from the building, Firestorm rapidly backtracked and circled the hill, deciding that a pony in the village would be more than happy to take him in. If not...

I could always sleep under a bench, He thought cynically as he made his way into the town. He drew a look or two because of his plainly terrorized appearance, but he didn't bother answering any greetings or such, he had somewhere to be after all.  
Of course, it got a little ridiculous, so he turned from his path and made a beeline for the only building where he knew he was sure to find a free bath. He stood in front of Carousel Boutique and knocked on the door before taking out his heavy cloak and sitting down with a forlorn look on his face. As he watched, the usual white unicorn with that overdone purple mane opened the door with practiced drama. "Hello there, friend! Welcome to Carousel.." She noticed who she was talking to "Oh, it's you. I see you tried the Everfree route again. Do you ever learn you idiotic stallion?"

Firestorm couldn't disagree with her. he flashed her an ironic smile. "You won't believe this, but I actually made a friend this trip."

Rarity looked at him. "you're right. I don't believe you.". She smiled down at him. "It's good to see you, cousin."

Firestorm stood up and bowed dramatically, "It's so kind of one so high as yourself to recognize one so lowly as me as family."

Rarity laughed at him, well used to Firestorm's level of sarcasm. "Shut up, you make many more bits than I do, it's not my fault you have absolutely no style... Uh, is that the special cloak I made you...covered in...dirt?" She looked fit to drop, so Firestorm threw the slightly ruined cloak inside and walked off with a cursory goodbye, aware that Rarity would compulsively fix the cloak, but wouldn't let him inside until he looked presentable. Which meant a proper wash. He could go to the Spa like Rarity usually forced him to...  
Or he could just go jump in the stream over there. That sounded better.

Firestorm dropped his wrecked saddlebags and pulled out everything he'd brought along: A role of parchment, A bag of bits, and his last bottle of rare northern aquavit. It wasn't much, but he had needed to leave space to carry the fuses back. And the aquavit was nearly finished anyway. He left everything in a pile and mozied over to the stream. Its clear water and pebbly bed looked inviting.

The peace was broken by a shattering thunder roll from his left. He looked up and saw two streaks racing through the sky. one was rainbow coloured, the other an unstable mix of blue, black and crackling white. the two unmistakable trails were left in the Wake of the two rapidly approaching mach cones. Firestorm knew without a doubt who was about to pass over him. He dashed into the stream as quickly as he could and dived to the bottom. There he remained, staring up at the sky, watching the light as it refracted through the water. the trails suddenly appeared, and then slowly faded away. Firestorm felt his breath burning for release, and pushed to the surface. _Maybe I should get inside in case that dumb mule with wings decides to fly over again, _He thought as he rapidly scrubbed himself clean. Then he jumped to the bank and trotted up to Rarity's house, dragging along his possessions at a rapid pace. He let himself in at the back door, absently noticing that his cloak had been repaired and washed and was currently hanging on the line.

Firestorm dried himself off on a towel in the laundry before walking through to the main kitchen, the central room of the building. He heard a banging and the sound of Rarity's loud sewing machine. He knew better than to enter the workroom, not wanting to become a living mannequin (again) and instead shouted out from the kitchen table, "Hey, Rare! Where'd you go?!"

The clattering sounds stopped for a moment as Rarity called out in a slightly more respectable manner, " I'm just busy making and order for this afternoon, I'll be down in a minute, it's just this material is so difficult..." She trailed off before the machine started up again. Firestorm shrugged to himself and, rather than bugging the busy unicorn, he made himself a sandwich. All the fashion crazy mare had were bloody daisies and a few berries. He found an egg or two, but wasn't going to bother frying one. He ate the simple meal, and waited in silent thought as the ruckus above continued unabated.

He was awakened by a knocking at the door. She shook his head, wondering how long he'd been dozing. He stood up and wandered out into the hall.

"Rare?! Your customer must be here!" He called out.

"Oh, be a dear and let the fellow in, will you? I will bring his gear down presently." Rarity answered. This was followed by a lot of scuffling and muttered curses obviously not meant to be heard.

Firestorm laughed silently at his compulsive cousin. She'd probably overdone the entire thing with jewels and frills and whatnot. On the other hoof, it was probably some bigwig colt looking to impress a mare with some fancy dressing. Not the sort of pony who liked being kept waiting. So of course Firestorm took his grand old time.

Eventually he got to the door and prepared his lungs for a parody of Rarity's classic greeting.  
He tossed his head and leaned down, then pulled open the door and rushed up proclaiming, "Welcome to Rarity's Carousel Bou-WHAT THE FUCK?!"

He fell back, carried by his own momentum, and landed against the opposite wall of the show room. He stared at the annoying nightmare framed in the doorway.

"Hiya! Didn't expect to see you here!" Chasing Haze cheered happily, "That was one hell of a reaction, mate, you okay?"

_No,_ Firestorm thought,_ Definitely not._


End file.
